The present invention relates to a glass run connecting corner piece provided in a window frame of a vehicle, and more particularly, relates to a glass run connecting corner piece which is suited for preventing occurrence of wind whistling and penetration of rainwater indoors during running of a vehicle at a high speed.
Glass runs are classified into those arranged at upper and lower edges of a window frame respectively, which are different in cross-sectional shape from each other. For example, the glass run 1 for the upper edge of the window frame (hereinafter referred to as "upper edge glass run") and the glass run 15 for the lower edge of the window frame (hereinafter referred to as "lower edge glass run") are arranged in such a manner as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, respectively.
The upper edge glass run 1 has a base portion 3, a hollow seal portion 5 and a bent lip portion 7. The base portion 3 is formed of solid rubber and fitted into a U-shaped portion of a window frame (door sash) 9. The hollow seal portion 5 has a seal wall 11 and a stopper wall 12 which are formed of foam rubber. An edge portion of door glass G abuts against the seal wall 11 to thereby prevent the penetration of rainwater indoors from the outside of the vehicle and the suction of indoor air to the outside of the same (which may be a cause of wind whistling) during running of the vehicle at a high speed.
The bent lip portion 7 protrudes from the base portion 3 with a predetermined separation from the hollow seal portion 5. The bent lip portion 7 coming into contact with the inner surface of the door glass G is bent so that its free end is involved inward (toward the base portion 3) in the direction of the arrow of FIG. 1. Here, repulsive force is generated to clamp the door glass G between the bent lip portion 7 and the stopper wall 12, so that the position of the door glass G is stabilized relative to the seal wall 11 to secure the sealing property between the door glass G and the seal wall 12. Of course, the bent lip portion 7 has a sub-sealing effect. A groove surrounded by the base portion 3 and the bent lip portion 7 serves as a water escape 13 of rainwater or the like. When the door glass G is opened or when the seal wall 11 is fatigued, the water escape 13 traps rainwater or the like entering indoors and guides it downward.
The lower edge glass run 15 is composed of a lower edge glass run inner 17 and a lower edge glass run outer 19 as shown in FIG. 2. The lower edge glass run inner 17 has a base portion 23, a first seal portion 25 and a second seal portion 27. The base portion 23 is fitted into a fastening portion of the window frame (the inner assembly of the door panel) 21. The first and second seal portions 25 and 27, which are belt-like members, are connected to the upper edge and the lower edge of the base portion 23, respectively. The free ends of the seal portions 25 and 27 come into contact with the inner surface of the door glass G mainly to prevent the suction of indoor air to the outside of the vehicle. A groove surrounded by the first seal portion 25, the base portion 23 and the second seal portion 27 serves as a water escape 29 to guide the water of the water escape 13 of the upper edge glass run 1 to a scupper 30 as shown in FIG. 3.
Also the lower edge glass outer 19 has a base portion 33 and two seal portions 35 and 37. The lower edge glass outer 19 is mounted to the window frame (the outer assembly of the door panel) 32 by a clip 31. The seal portions 35 and 37 mainly prevent the penetration of rainwater or the like indoors from the outside of the vehicle.
The upper edge glass run 1 and the lower edge glass run inner 17 will be described more in detail hereunder in connection of the field of the invention (prevention of occurrence of wind whistling and penetration of rainwater indoors during running of the vehicle at a high speed) which is described above at the beginning of this specification.
The upper edge glass run 1 and the lower edge glass run inner 17 are separately formed by extrusion and mounted onto the upper edge and the lower edge of the window frame of the door, respectively, so that the glass run 1 and the glass run inner 17 are connected to each other by abutment (without sticking) at opposite ends (corner portions) of the lower edge of the window frame. FIG. 1 shows an example of connection of the glass run 1 and the glass run inner 17 at a position A shown in FIG. 3. In FIG. 1., an end portion of the upper edge glass run 1 is put on the base portion 23 of the lower edge glass run inner 17 in order to make the water escape 13 of the upper edge glass run 1 communicate with the water escape 29 of the lower edge glass run inner 17. Here, a lower end of the hollow seal portion 5 of the upper edge glass run 1 (coming into contact with the lower glass run inner 17) is partly cut so that the second seal portion 27 of the lower edge glass run inner 17 can be bent along the door glass G in the direction of the whitish arrow of FIG. 1. On the other hand, a top end of the first seal portion 25 of the lower edge glass run inner 17 (coming into contact with the upper edge glass run 1) is partly cut so that the first seal portion 25 and the bent lip portion 7 can be bent respectively in the directions of the whitish and blackish arrows of FIG. 1, as a result of which the first seal portion 25 is prevented from interfering with the bent lip portion 7.
The structure of connection between the upper edge glass run 1 and the lower edge glass run inner 17 as shown in FIG. 1, however, has a disadvantage in that a space S may arise between the bent lip portion 7 and the first seal portion 25 because of variations in size of each door assembly. Although the first seal portion 25 has the function of preventing the occurrence of wind whistling, the function becomes ineffective in the presence of such a space S because indoor air is sucked from the space S to the outside during running of the vehicle at a high speed.
Further, rainwater or the like which must be exhausted from the water escapes 13 and 29 may be leaked from the space S to the inside of the vehicle.
The aforementioned disadvantage may be eliminated by an improvement in assembling accuracy of the glass runs. However, the assembling work for such an improvement requires much time, undesirably.
Furthermore, it may be considered that the space S is blocked by sticking the bent lip portion 7 of the upper edge glass run 1 to the first seal portion 25 of the lower edge glass run inner 17 with the upper edge glass run 1 being bent substantially perpendicularly along the corner portion of the window frame (for example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 59-67034). However, the bending directions of the bent lip portion 7 and the first seal portion 25 are different from each other (as shown by the blackish and whitish arrows of FIG. 1, respectively) when they are in contact with the door glass G. It is, therefore, undesirable to stick the bent lip portion 7 to the first seal portion 25, because the sealing property thereof is lowered by interference in the bending functions thereof.